26 Teachers and Administrators Awarded Tenure

There was standing room only at the Board of Education meeting on Tuesday May 8 when 26 Scarsdale staffers were granted tenure. They arrived with their families and colleagues in tow to wish them well – and the room overflowed with proud teachers and friends.

Tenure celebrates excellence in teaching and collaboration and it is apt that these teachers were celebrated on the eve of national teacher appreciation week. It represents a formal thank you on behalf of our entire community to these teachers for their work and the work they will continue to do.

"Achieving tenure is a significant accomplishment in the career of a teacher." Explained Drew Patrick, assistant superintendent for personnel and administrative services, "Teachers are evaluated using the Danielson framework. Multiple observations, drop in observations by supervisors and evaluators, formal and informal mentoring, a year-end conference, assessment of progress, a portfolio of artifacts, and feedback from the community all contribute to the attainment of tenure. We believe the rigors of the tenure process are commensurate with the importance of the achievement."

The applicants for tenure this year were asked questions about teaching; Why do you teach?, What next steps do you plan to take to improve your teaching? And others. Mr. Patrick shared some of their answers anonymously with those at the meeting.

In response to the question "Why do you teach?" one teacher answered, "I teach because in order for our society to thrive and evolve we need guides showing us what kind of society is possible." Brazilian educator Paula Freire says, "Teacher should live their dreams within their educational space. I teach because I want to be one of the guides that teaches the academic and critical skills needed to make our society more democratic and equitable. I have personally seen that all students, regardless of their personal and academic backgrounds have the ability to be change makers."

When talking about next steps for improvement, there were many admirable responses including increasing the use of technology as a learning tool, reframing lessons to be more student driven, and designing exploratory activities where children use simulations and problem solving strategies to discover the concept.

The high school teachers who received tenure were: Carlos Bedoya (Social Studies), Maureen Ellison-Connolly (Mathematics), Alexander Greenberg (Physical Education), Janna Johnsen (Art), Jessica Levenberg (Health), Vincent Licciardello (Science), Jonathan Pai (Social Studies), and James Tulley (Health).

The middle school teachers who received tenure were: Daniel Boniello (Music), Rachel Hauser (Mathematics), Kiersten Henry (Foreign Language), and Dana Kligman (Speech).

The elementary school teachers who received tenure were: Andrew Brown (EW/FM/QR Music), Collette Martin (EW/GA Reading), Lyndsay Freed (FM Elementary), Maureen Windwer (FM/HE Reading), Francesca Ross (GA Special Education), Agetina Smajlaj (GA School Psychologist), Rachel Witmer (GA Elementary), Erin Cameron (HE Art), Kate Byrnes (QR Media Specialist), Meghan Meade (QR Special Education), Donna Wolfson (QR Elementary), Eric Rauschenbach (District Director of Special Education), and Sharon Hill (GA Principal).

Congratulations to all of the teachers and administrators on this amazing accomplishment!